Conventional frustrated total internal reflection/total internal reflection optical fiber switches operate by displacing at least one of the fibers to contact, or come within less than a micron from contact with, the other fiber (closed position) or to release contact with the other fiber (opened position). Generally, the optical fibers connect one another at ends which are formed transverse to the longitudinal axis of the fibers and coplanar to one another. In the closed position, input light is transmitted from one optical fiber to the other with little or no transmission loss. In the opened position, in which a gap exists of greater than one micron between the optical fibers, input light is reflected from one of the fibers, leading to complete or partial transmission loss. Complete transmission loss occurs during total internal reflection, when light approaches a dielectric interface at or above a critical angle and is thereby suppressed from being transmitted to the other optical fiber. When the angle is below the critical angle, or the distance between the optical fibers is sufficiently small, some input light may cross the gap between the optical fibers and thereby frustrate the total internal reflection. An example of such a conventional optical switch is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,390,266 and 4,176,908.